October 31, 2007 at 12:52 am (Why homeschool)
One of the things I love about homeschooling is that my children have lots of good, quality time to spend together – having fun and making memories. Here are some cute pictures I couldn’t help but post….
I asked the children to get dressed, and this is how they came down (The Dancer is wearing the Naturalist’s clothes).
Aren’t they so cute together in the corn maze?
Their first time miniature golfing!
Do you think they look alike?
October 30, 2007 at 12:44 am (Reading)
I’ve had a couple of friends recently ask me how to teach a child to read. I’m no expert on the topic – a year ago I didn’t know anything about teaching reading. Today, I know only a little more than nothing. However, what I’ve done with The Naturalist has worked well, and I’ll share it if it is helpful for anyone.
If your child is interested and motivated to learn how to read, the first step in teaching reading is to make sure that your child can identify all their upper and lowercase letters, and can match upper case to lower case. (Don’t worry about confusing lowercase letters b and d – this confuses many kids for quite some time!). Next, kids need to know what sounds the letters make. The easiest way to teach this is to get a copy of the Leap Frog DVD called The Letter Factory. It teaches one sound per letter, is fun, and easy to do. The Dancer knows all her letter sounds (at the age of three!) thanks to this video alone.
The next thing to do is to get a good phonics-based book that teaches a child how to read. I use Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons, but I’ve also heard great things about The Ordinary Parent’s Guide to Teaching Reading and Phonics Pathways, too.
100 Easy Lessons is great because it is cheap and easy to use, and requires no advance preparation on my part (aside from reading the introductory chapter before you get started that explains how to use the book). When it is time for a lesson, just open the book, and follow the instructions. It says word for word what you need to say, and each lesson is only 20 minutes long.
Once you get a bit into the book (say, 40 or more lessons), your child can practice their reading skills on real books (see the list below). Besides easy readers, one other resource I used that was very helpful was “Happy Phonics” from lovetolearn.net. It isn’t anything flashy, but it is cheaper than other “fun” reading programs (some “fun” phonics programs cost $200!). “Happy Phonics” is nothing more than a bunch of phonics games on cardstock. It does take some prep time (I seem to be cutting and laminating lots of stuff), but it is a great way to make reading a bit more fun. In fact, if I have any criticisms of 100 Easy Lessons, it is that it can be a bit dry.
Also, Leap Frog has two other DVD’s worth viewing. The Talking Words Factory teaches making words with short vowels, and Talking Words Factory 2 Code Word Capers teaches long vowels and vowel pairs, etc.
Eventually, I found that 100 Easy Lessons was getting a bit hard for the Naturalist. The book teaches a new sound every other lesson, and, without a lot of reading practice, it can add up and get confusing fast. So, we started over at the beginning again. There’s nothing like a little bit of review to get the confidence level and excitement back, as well as to really cement all that he’s learning. We read completed the first 65 lessons, then started over again at Lesson One. I’m so glad we started over! It was great to hear a lot of “Reading is too easy for me, Mommy!” and “Can we do another lesson today?”
By the time you’re done with 100 Easy Lessons, your child will be reading at a second grade reading level.
Only one warning: Do not teach your child to read with a “whole language” reading program. Whole language is a disaster, and is responsible for much of the reading problems in schools today. My suggestions employ phonics-based resources, not whole language. If you don’t believe me, check out the research yourself – it is absolutely amazing that any school can still use the whole language approach anymore, given all that we know about reading these days.
Above is a picture of the Naturalist, reading a book to several of his friends. This was one of his proudest moments this fall!
Finally, as promised, here are some great readers to get from the library to give your child practice with his new reading skills. Unfortunately, I’ve discovered that not all “Level 1 Readers” are really at the same level. So, here is list of some of the readers we’ve used and have liked. All of these (except the Little Angel Readers) we borrowed from the library.
Easiest Readers (try after 40 or so of 100 easy lessons)
Bob Books (available from Amazon)
Cowley, Joy. How to Make a Hot Dog
Cowley, Joy. I can jump
Cowley, Joy. Look Out, Dan!
Coxe, Molly. Cat traps
Coxe, Molly. Fox trot
Coxe, Molly. Big egg
Gjording, Nancy Mahan. Go fish
Haskins, Lori. Ducks in muck
Higgins, Cadie. The Bus
Higgins, Cadie. My Fan
Higgins, Cadie. Pam and Hal
Melser, June. Two little dogs
Randell, Beverley. The big kick
Weston, Martha. Jack and Jill and Big Dog Bill : a phonics reader
Little Angel Reader, Level A. (The best phonics-based reader around!) (www.stonetabletpress.com)
Easy Readers (maybe 50 or 55)
Coxe, Molly. Hot dog
Cowley, Joy. Ducks.
Cowley, Joy. “Scat!” said the cat
Cowley, Joy. How many hot dogs?
Cutting, Jillian. Just Look at you!
Bowers, Tim. A new home
Brown, Margaret Wise. I like stars
Brown, Margaret Wise. I like bugs
Earl, Janice. Jan has a doll
Gjording, Nancy Mahan. Go Fish.
Hoffman, Joan. Mia’s Sun Hat
Keller, Holly. What I see
Knudsen, Michelle. Cat hat
Lascaro, Rita. Down on the farm.
Lewison, Wendy Cheyette. Buzz Said the Bee
David McPhail. Big Pig and Little Pig
McPhail, David, Jack and Rick
McPhail, David, Rick is sick
Ross, Dev. Fox’s Best Trick Ever (We both read)
Sullivan, Paula. Todd’s box
Williams, David K. Tick Tock
Wonder Books series. (some are too hard, others perfect. Best are: Dogs, Malls, A Pet, I like Bugs, Ben’s Pens, Left, A Fox, Hot Pot, Fun, Naps.)
Additionally, the Dick and Jane Series can be a lot of fun for kids, even though they are not phonics based. We especially liked The World of Dick and Jane and Friends as well as Storybook Treasury of Dick and Jane and Friends. Both are about the same reading level.
Little More Challenging (has many words that are advanced)
Cartwright, Pauline. Me and My Dog.
Cowley, Joy. Mud Walk
Cowley, Joy. Scat!” said the cat
Ghigna, Charles. See the Yak Yak
Hillert, Margaret. Four Good Friends.
Hillert, Margaret. Go to Sleep, Dear Dragon.
Hillert, Margaret. Happy Birthday, Dear Dragon.
Hillert, Margaret. Happy Easter, Dear Dragon.
Hillert, Margaret. I need you, Dear Dragon.
Hillert, Margaret. It’s Halloween, Dear Dragon.
Hillert, Margaret. The Little Cookie.
Hillert, Margaret. Merry Christmas, Dear Dragon.
Hillert, Margaret. Who Goes to School?
Knudsen, Michelle. Cat Hat.
Little Angel Reader, Level B. (www.stonetabletpress.com)
Additionally, the back of Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons has a book list that is meant to be completed after finishing all 100 lessons. However, we’ve found that the books listed could have actually been read much earlier.
October 27, 2007 at 12:44 am (Reading)
One of the things I love about homeschooling is that my children have plenty of time for great literature. One of the ways I accomplish this is through books on CD. The children listen to books in their rooms during quiet time (a favorite time of the day for the Naturalist – he colors, draws, plays with his train set, etc… in his room and listens to books on CD.).
We also listen to books on CD in the car. When I was a child and attended school, I had to ride the bus everywhere. On my bus ride, I wasted an hour and a half every day listening to bullying, ridicule, name-calling, vomiting, dares to do something gross or indecent (like kissing people you weren’t dating), or even once alcohol was passed around (those kids got an in-school suspension!) I don’t blame the bus driver – it was his job to drive safely, not to monitor us. My kids spend only a small amount of time traveling, but when we do, we make it enjoyable and educational.
Below is a partial listing of some of the books on CD we’ve listened to in the past six months. These are just the ones I can think of off the top of my head:
Atwater. Mr. Popper’s Penguins.
Banks, Lynne Reid. The Indian in the cupboard
Barrie, J.M. Peter Pan.
Bauer, Jessie Wise. Story of the World, Vol. 1
Cleary, Beverly. The Mouse and the Motorcycle.
Cleary, Beverly. Runaway Ralph.
Cleary, Beverly. Ralph S. Mouse.
Dahl, Roald. Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.
Kipling, Rudyard. The Jungle Book.
Kipling, Rudyard. Rikki-tikki-tavi.
Lofting, Hugh. The Story of Doctor Dolittle.
Lofting, Hugh. The Voyages of Doctor Doolittle.
Milne, A.A. The house at Pooh Corner
Milne, A.A. Now we are six.
Milne, A.A. Winnie the Pooh.
Potter, Beatrix. The Complete Tales of Beatrix Potter.
Seldon, George. The Cricket in Times Square.
Travers, P. L. Mary Poppins.
White, E. B. Charlotte’s Web.
White, E. B. Stuart Little.
White, E. B. Trumpet of the Swan.
In general, I’d recommend anything read by Jim Weiss, and I also really like the stories in the Rabbit Ears Listening Library.
My son’s vocabulary has improved tremendously, thanks in part to books on CD. I’d highly recommend these books to any parent!
October 27, 2007 at 12:20 am (Why homeschool)
If you’re interested in learning more about homeschooling, a recent study at Carnegie Mellon University looked at the best blogs. A homeschooling blog was in the top 30. It has lots of great links and info about homeschooling. It is:
http://www.whyhomeschool.blogspot.com/
Enjoy!
October 25, 2007 at 8:37 pm (Why homeschool)
Here’s another great article that I recently received about the benefits of homeschooling:
Should I Homeschool All Day?
Often, homeschool moms get burned out because they are trying to
match the hours of the public school day. They insist their child
sits at the table for 45 minutes to an hour doing math. They insist
the entire hour lesson of grammar be completed before moving on to
science. Within weeks the kids are burned out, mom is burned out;
everyone hates homeschooling.
But this is unnecessary. First, studies have shown that short lessons
achieve far greater results in academic retention and retrieval than
lengthy lessons. Second, we must conquer the lie that the kids at
school are getting more of an education than our children because
they are at school all day long.
We see the neighbors hop on the school bus at 7:30, returning at 2:30
each day; and we are certain that they are engaged in learning most
of those hours away.
Well, several recent research studies have shown that for every 50
minute class period, only 28% of that time is spent in engaged
learning.
That means that for every subject in school, the students only spend
about 14 minutes being taught or involved in learning activities. The
rest of the time is wasted on lining up, changing classes or rooms,
taking books out, putting books away, dealing with discipline issues,
answering unimportant questions, handing out papers, handing out
assignments, giving homework assignments, explaining what is expected
and lecturing on topics unrelated to actual academic learning.
The subjects covered in school are math, social studies, science,
P.E, language arts, foreign language, health and arts. Generally,
arts and p.e alternate, as do science and health. Thus, in a typical
school day, the students only have 84 minutes of actual learning
time, that’s less than an hour and a half each day. They are gone
seven hours to receive less than an hour and a half of instruction
and actual learning.
Here is what one classroom teacher writes in her weblog:
As individuals, with some notable exceptions, I like every one of my
180-or-so students this year. But en masse, they make me freakin’
crazy!
They assume that any time there are not actual words coming from my
mouth, they have permission to talk. I then spend 3 minutes getting
everyone back on task, only to be interrupted by a request to sign
something, a phone call, or a p.a. announcement. Actual time spent
teaching is probably 3% of the class period.
Though she is guessing, if her calculations are correct, the time our
neighbors spend at school equals only about nine minutes of
instruction the entire day. Giving the schools the benefit of the
doubt, we’ll stick to the hour and a half calculated in the
scientific research studies. Remember, also, these studies spanned
grades K – 12.
So, do your children spend an hour and a half each day learning -
either reading, writing or discussing school subjects with you? Are
their minds engaged for an hour and a half throughout the entire day?
If so, you are doing better than the schools across the nation.
If we think this through further, if the school children only have
fourteen minutes of instruction or learning during each subject, what
if they are not paying attention during those crucial minutes? Most
students are so distracted by the noises, movements and issues
encountered in a typical classroom, that it is difficult to focus on
the subject at hand. The fact is, as home educators, when we engage
our children in any kind of learning, we are very aware of the moment
they quit paying attention. The one-on-one instruction of
homeschooling is far superior to a teacher lecturing to a class of 25
students. So many distractions to education are immediately
eliminated in the homeschool environment. If our children only
spend 14 minutes on each subject, they are still more engaged, more
attentive and more focused than they would be at school.
As far as academics and instruction goes, homeschooling wins hands
down. Do not believe the lie that your children would be better off in
school. Don’t listen to those voices in your head telling you that
you can’t do this. You can! You can do it better than they do it in
school. You are capable. Your children are capable of doing it mostly
on their own! In fact, that’s the second point I would like to make -
if we embrace the idea that our children should become independent
learners, we release a great deal of the burden of homeschooling.
October 9, 2007 at 1:28 am (Why homeschool)
There are so many advantages to homeschooling. First, homeschooling is efficient, meaning that my son can get his academic work done quickly and spend more time being a kid (We only spend an hour a day “doing school”, and we don’t school on Fridays).
Second, he gets to spend more time with his mother and sisters. Therefore, we aren’t just a collection of persons living under one roof that I shuttle from one activity to another – we actually spend meaningful time together. (And, I don’t mind driving them to various afternoon activities, because we’ve spent the entire morning together).
Third, my son is his teacher’s favorite five year old. I love every moment with the kids, and I don’t need to be paid to spend time with them.
Fourth, kids work harder and learn more when they are interested in the material. For example, Grandpa recently took a trip to Egypt. This trip has sparked a facination in ancient Egypt, and we spend lots of time studying Egypt, even though I never had any intentions of covering ancient Egypt this year. So, even when our “school time” is over for the day, my son will bring me a book about Egypt to read, or he will spend all his free time writing words in hieroglyphics (we have a book from the library that shows common hieroglyphics for each letter of the alphabet). This is called “delight-directed learning.” My son spends his free time learning things that interest him, and choosing the curriculum based on what interests him means that he loves to learn!
Fifth, I can tailor the curriculum and pace to his needs. If something doesn’t fit well with his learning style, we try something else. Also, we progress at his pace. My son is only five, but he’s doing first grade work. We can go faster, because he’s not held up by the less intelligent kids in his class. Also, when he doesn’t understand something, we can review the topic over and over again until he achieves mastery of it. So many school kids get lost on one particular topic, then fall further and further behind when the teacher keeps going.
Sixth, socialization! My son isn’t picking up any bad habits from peers, because his friends are all hand-selected by me. Additionally, my son has an amazing vocabulary, because he spends his free time with me and spends lots of time (both in his room and in the car) listening to books on CD (as opposed to spending the majority of his waking time with other five year olds).
Lastly, homeschooling is fabulous because I’m still a major influence in my children’s lives. This means that I can pass on my faith and my values to the children. I couldn’t do this if I only saw them a little bit at the end of each day.
To be honest, I never had any interest in homeschooling. However, a friend of mine lent me a copy of The Well-Trained Mind, by Susan Wise Bauer and Jessie Bauer. I took the book only to be polite. I planned to read a few pages, give it back, and tell her I wasn’t interested. However, after reading only the first chapter, I was hooked! If you’ve ever considered homeschooling, I can’t recommend the book enough.
Below are some interesting links that also talk about other advantages of homeschooling. Enjoy!
http://www.northsta rteens.org/ group.cfm? g=103
http://www.suntimes .com/news/ 184566,CST- NWS-unskul24. article
http://www.homescho ol.com/articles/ Socialization/ default.asp
http://www.ishmael.com/Education/Writings/unschooling.shtml
http://whyhomeschool.blogspot.com/2006/09/reasons-to-avoid-government-schools.html
Finally, here are some famous people who were homeschooled:
Presidents
George Washington
Thomas Jefferson
John Quincy Adams
James Madison
William Henry Harrison
John Tyler
Abraham Lincoln
Theordore Roosevelt
Woodrow Wilson
Franklin Delano Roosevelt
Scientists
George Washington Carver
Pierre Curie
Albert Einstein
Booker T. Washington
Blaise Pascal
Educators
Frank Vandiver (President – Texas A&M)
Fred Terman (President – Stanford)
William Samuel Johnson (President Columbia)
John Witherspoon (President of Princeton)
Generals
Stonewall Jackson
Robert E. Lee
Douglas MacArthur
George Patton
Inventors
Alexander Graham Bell
Thomas Edison
Cyrus McCormick
Orville Wright & Wilbur Wright
Artists
Claude Monet
Leonardo da Vinci
Jamie Wyeth
Andrew Wyeth
John Singleton Copley
Statesmen
Konrad Adenauer
Winston Churchill
Benjamin Franklin
Patrick Henry
William Penn
Henry Clay
United States Supreme Court Judges
John Jay
John Marshall
John Rutledge
Composers
Irving Berlin
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Anton Bruckner
Felix Mendelssohn
Francis Poulenc
Writers
Hans Christian Anderson
Charles Dickens
Brett Harte
Mark Twain
Sean O’Casey
Phillis Wheatley
Mercy Warren
Pearl S. Buck
Agatha Christie
C.S. Lewis
George Bernard Shaw
Others
Charles Chaplin – Actor
George Rogers Clark – Explorer
Andrew Carnegie – Industrialist
Noel Coward – Playwright
John Burroughs – Naturalist
Bill Ridell – Newspaperman
Will Rogers – Humorist
Albert Schweitzer – Physician
Tamara McKinney – World Cup Skier
Jim Ryan – World Runner
Ansel Adams – Photographer
Charles Louis Montesquieu – philosopher
John Stuart Mill – Economist
John Paul Jones – father of the American Navy
Florence Nightingale – nurse
Clara Barton – started the Red Cross
Abigail Adams – wife of John Adams
Martha Washington – wife of George W.
Constitutional Convention Delegates
George Washington – 1st President of the U.S.
James Madison – 4th President of the U.S.
John Witherspoon – President of Princeton U.
Benjamin Franklin – inventor and statesman
William S. Johnson – President of Columbia C.
George Clymer – U.S. Representative
Charles Pickney III – Governor of S. Carolina
John Francis Mercer – U.S. Representative
George Wythe – Justice of Virginia High Court
William Blount – U.S. Senator
Richard D. Spaight – Governor of N. Carolina
John Rutledge – Chief Justice U.S. Supr Court
William Livingston – Governor of New Jersey
Richard Basset – Governor of Delaware
William Houston – lawyer
William Few – U.S. Senator
George Mason
October 6, 2007 at 12:47 am (Photos of us)
Homeschooling is lots of fun! It only takes an hour a day to homeschool a Kindergartener, so my son gets to spend most of his day just “being a kid”, rather than sitting in a desk all day. Take a look!
After an hour of school, we head to the local sprayground with other homeschool friends.
Dressing up as beekeepers and exploring the world of insects.
We take lots of field trips! Here’s one to a Planetarium show!
The Historical Society is so much fun!
On a nice day, we skip schooling and go to the zoo. The kids are playing on the zoo playground.
We don’t usually homeschool on Fridays. Instead, the kids go to a Montessori class. However, on Friday, September 28, we went to an airshow – the largest gathering of World War II airplanes.
